Happy Halloween from our stealth ninjas! They definitely selected their costumes based on the weaponry that came along with it.
Not our most successful trick or treating attempt, but you don’t have to worry, the boys got plenty of candy. Chase still isn’t feeling good (ugh, I know), so we opted for an abbreviated Halloween. I don’t think any of us were too disappointed to have to cut our time in the 30 degree weather short.
Chase still isn’t feeling great but we mustered our energy and buckled down for some last-minute pumpkin carving.
Robbe wanted to carve a dolphin (for a reason no one is clear on) and Chase selected a Dementor (from Harry Potter). The boys took on more of a supervisory roll but it was fun nonetheless.
Now fingers crossed that Chase is feeling good enough to trick-or-treat tomorrow (he definitely wasn’t tonight). Tomorrow’s also the big STEAM Fair at school. He’s been working so hard on his project with his team—it’s going to be a rough day to be sick, I’ll just say that. Come on, sleep, work some magic tonight!
Today was pretty dreamy. No plans and no reason to leave the house (except for a quick piano lesson). Just what we needed. Chase seems to have turned the corner and still no sign of a fever from Robbe (I’m shocked). I got some recap work done for the festival and just enjoyed some quality time with my favorite little guys (they were off school again today for a teacher work day).
I’ve maybe never been more tired than I am right now. It was another full day of activity after seven days of going non-stop.
Today we made it to our niece’s confirmation (yay, Anni!) and then immediately went home for Chase to rest (he’s still in rough shape). Robbe and I headed to a birthday party (at a waterpark, nonetheless) and then I made it home in time to turnaround and leave right away for my last book festival event. In total, I attended 15 events in the last two weeks (12 of those were in the last seven days). I. Am. Tired.
I’ll post a link to photos when they’re up on the book festival site. I got some good ones this year.
But, for now, I’m going to bed. I might just sleep until Tuesday.
Chris and I busted out for a date night tonight (to a book festival event, obviously), but before we left I forced him to pose for this photo in the middle of our bathroom renovation. When a mirror comes down and is propped up in the perfect location, what else can you do?
When construction is happening upstairs but you’ve got some kiddos battling colds/fevers, it’s time for a basement slumber party. Can it be a slumber party is it’s just nap? Either way…it worked! The banging and sawing was still present but about as muted as it could be. I’ll take it.
This was an exhausting day. I’m too tired to go into all the details, but here’s a glimpse at my day:
Got the boys off to school (with an extra little one in tow who joins us on Wednesday mornings).
Brought Blossom, the hamster, with to school to do show and tell in both classrooms. He was a big hit!
Attended two back-to-back book festival events. They were both SO good!
Stopped to get my tires checked (a follow-up visit).
Ran home to work for about ten minutes and check on our bathroom reno project (photos to come).
Picked up the boys from school.
Stopped at a local nonprofit to drop off a 4-H community service donation.
Headed home to make fudgy oatmeal bars for the teachers at the boys’ school to enjoy during P/T conferences tomorrow. For the record, I signed up for this a long time ago and didn’t realize that this week would be so crazy.
Found out Chase had a fever. Ugh.
Changed my plans to attend a third book festival event and decided to stay home for some reading and cuddling time with my favorite people.
So that was my day. How was yours?
Our big [huge] bathroom reno starts this week. Did I tell you about our bathroom reno? I’m sure all the details will seep out over the next few months but the short version is that we’re redoing our master bathroom (a leak from the current shower drove that decision) and adding a new guest bathroom at the same time (not because of a leak).
Most of this is possible because we’re taking out the gigantic jacuzzi tub pictured above. The boys are the only ones not completely sold on its removal.
I promise there will be lots more photos as the work gets started. Please think happy thoughts for the project.
I got new tires today. The things you get excited about when you’re an adult, right?
Check out this sweet autumn display outside the tire repair shop. Can you handle how cute it is? Props to their visual display team!
This guy officially graduated from speech. Robbe no longer has an IEP for speech therapy.
After continuing to make progress all last year, we chatted with the school speech therapist and Robbe’s teacher last spring and decided to keep him in therapy through the summer just in case he had a bit of a slide. He didn’t!
During his last speech probe, he nailed 200 words…he got every one right. It was time to put this chapter of his life behind him. And we couldn’t be more proud of him or more thankful for the speech therapists (the one pictured above, and this one, and here’s another) that gave our little man the gift of communication. After all the back and forth about whether or not he was speech delayed 2.5 years ago, I have a new appreciation for early intervention and the power that these special education teachers truly possess.
The fall colors are at their peak right now—at least in my opinion. The bright bursts of orange and red around every corner make me oh so happy. We took a family poll, and it’s clear that I’m the most excited about the festive scenery. I’m ok with that. If I talk about it enough, I’m sure I can mold another fall foliage fan (extra points for alliteration, please).
We braved the cold weather (and a bit of sleet) for our annual apple orchard trip. Bundled up, it really wasn’t so bad and we avoided all the crazy people who prefer to pick apples in beautiful weather. Bushel and a Peck orchard was another big hit again this year. We’re sold on this sweet little family-run business. It’s got just enough entertainment without any of the over-the-top stuff. Apples, pumpkins, delicious apple treats, and even a couple of gourds. That’s a good day.
I snapped this photo of Robbe at the library this week. Isn’t it fun?
It’s been a bit since I’ve shared a recipe. And this is a good one. I have ulterior motives for sharing it, though. The only place this recipe exists is as a photo buried in my email. It always takes me forever to find it and is super annoying to try to read as a photo on my phone. Shout out to Erica for sharing this recipe with me [six years ago]. Also, did you know there’s an “s” at the end of Brussel? You learn something new every day.
Ingredients:
Salt and pepper
2 pounds brussels sprouts, trimmed and quartered
3 TB unsalted butter
1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
20oz package of cheese tortellini
Zest and juice from 1 lemon (grab an extra one if you want it extra-lemony)
Directions:
In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook brussels sprouts until crisp-tender, about four minutes. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, melt butter over medium: add onion and cook until translucent, about eight minutes.
With a large slotted spoon, transfer sprouts to skillet. Increase heat to high and cook, stirring occasionally, until sprouts begin to brown, about five minutes. Meanwhile, in pot, cook tortellini according to package instructions then drain. Toss tortellini with vegetables and stir in lemon zest and juice.
Another big day for our little man. Today he decided he was going to start reading. Just like that, he’s ready. Slow and steady wins the race here. I’m excited to be on this journey with him and to see his mind expand. Such an incredible time in his life.
This one decided to tackle the monkey bars today. We had about ten minutes during Chase’s piano lesson for him to figure it out…and he did! This was a big one for him. Such a proud little guy.
I attended Ferguson’s Apple Orchard with about 70 four and five year olds on Friday. Luckily, the weather stopped raining just in time to enjoy lots of activities and a bit of apple picking, too.
It’s nice to [finally] have the chance to attend school field trips without having to worry about childcare duties for our little one. Hopefully there will be a lot more adventures on school buses over the years to come.
We’re hosting some of our favorite house guests this weekend (which is why I missed yesterday’s post). The weather wasn’t ideal—how can it just keep raining?!? But the company was good (so much laughing) and that’s all that matters.
Also, there was apple crisp. That’s one way to brighten up a gloomy day. :)
I’m trying to make a more conscious effort to coordinate playdates these days. I’m pretty sure before this year Chase had hosted or attended probably two non-relative playdates of his choosing. I was fine living in that existence. Life is easier in our little bubble. The boys aren’t trying to put on a show. I don’t have to deal with the state of our toy room before and after the kids are here. There’s no fear of anyone being left out when only one friend is over. I could go on and on.
But as the boys get older, they want to hang out with their friends more. Crazy, right?!? It’s time for me to get onboard with the idea and so I am.
We even hosted a double playdate yesterday. Although the two boys that came over were sweet as can be and all four boys played remarkably well together, it was still exhausting for me (part of that was trying to prepare a corn-free meal—it’s harder than you think!). I’m sure I’ll get used to having semi-random kids in our space over time. And my boys really did have a blast.
Now I can check “playdates” off my list for at least a month, right? Right?!?
Yesterday, temperatures hung out in the high 40s/low 50s all day. Today, it was something like 85 degrees. That’s crazy.
You know what else is crazy? I took this photo of our plants by the front door. The humidity was so high, water droplets were forming and running down toward the grass. That’s not from rain…that’s from humidity. Whoa.
small city | BIG DAYS
home | about | meet the team | work with me | contact
